Target to Carry Arcade cabs. Kinda

[dr. kwack]

yuppicide- to answer your questions...

 

The cartridge should be removable- although I haven't tried yet. When I plugged it in there was no "click" of a lock or anything, it just plugged in like any other game cartridge. The cart port is designed to give the user room to remove the cart and it is labeled "Volume 1" (as if to say- more volumes on the way)

 

It is about the size/shape of a super NES cart, maybe a bit longer. What makes it unusual is that inside the cart there are 2-3 RCA type plugs next to the usual "wafer".

 

I will try to grab a digital camera, snap some pics of it, and post them. The holidays/work have me hopping right now.

 

Yeah, the monitor is small and needs color adjustment (as stated a few posts above, I contacted the company about that). For me, once I start playing, I don't mind at all.

 

I played many of these games 20 years ago in arcades and have done so on MAME for 8 or so. I've played many of the re-hash versions on Super NES/Microsoft Arcade/Plug N Play etc. and I could tell right away that those were not the real deal.

 

If these are ports, someone did a very good job on them. I think it's nice little unit.

It's fun. Had this thing come out when I was a kid I would have begged for one.

 

The best advice here for potential buyers is to try it yourself. I'm a classic gamer, but I don't rush out to buy every retro video thing that's out there just because it's "retro". I agree that most of the "old school" (and I hate that term) stuff is marketing crap. But, this one impressed me enough that I thought it was worth the money.

 

But, that's just one guy's opinion...

[Crimefighter]

I found one of these tabletop cabinets at Dick's Sporting Goods...wonder when Best Buy will carry them?

[yuppicide]

If I could just buy a cabinet I would totally do that. I mean, I still want one of these units and the Taito one as well, but I'd totally buy one to turn into a MAME cab.

[Shannon]

I wonder what this thing would look like on a "real" monitor. Something a little larger than 13".

[keilbaca]

I played one tonight, and here's my thoughts.

 

1. The joysticks are too tall. They're not like the ms. pac-man sized sticks, they're a bit taller. They have 6 buttons, crappy quality, everything is microswitch.

 

2. It is a SNES port basically, however the difficulty is there. I can't get past the 2nd level on Sinistar (i never can, only on the atari 2600 proto did i get farther than that). I like that sinistar in particular better than say, for the gamecube, because the text is MUCH easier to read. Sinistar looked alright, despite some color changes. However, games like root beer tapper, you can DEFINITELY tell its a very watered down version graphically. But, the difficulty is still there.

 

3. its odd sized. Too tall for a chair, not tall enough to stand and play. Its best being put on a platform about a foot tall to play right.

 

4. The cabinet is pretty strong built, but if they make any fighting games for it, it will definitely be rocking upon playing.

 

Overall, not worth $500, but definitely a good experience. If it was $100 or so, it would be worth it, mainly because I'm a huge tapper and sinistar fan.

[Curt Vendel]

That is correct, I made the mistake of earlier saying it was a Genesis on a Chip, but it is actually a clone of the SNES chip, which is interesting as I was hired last January by a competing firm to create a tabletop arcade unit and we had looked into the SNES chip, and the problem was that there were several active patents in the chip held by Nintendo so I advised to stay clear of the chip as Nintendo could sit back, wait for enough units to sell, then swoop in and slam a massive lawsuit against a company using the SNES chip, so that could very well happen against Biggames if they didn't clear the way with the patents.

 

The competing firm is a small company called Jazwares, my firm developed a full SNK arcade center for them, what we did however was actually reproduce the exact SNK NEO GEO MVS architecture into an under $100 all in one board. However, Jazwares decided to put liquidated high end Pentium II's and low end Pentium III systems into a real arcade cabinet with real arcade controls. I've heard they are going to be selling the units in December, but since they never completed their contract with my firm, I haven't been working with them since August, so I don't know if they'll get their SNK units out to Market or not.

 

Here is a photo of the original prototype my firm built for them to show at the January 2005 Toy Faire:

 

 

 

 

This was the production version on its pedestal (sold seperately) we had shown at E3, this was a Capcom version my firm created for Jazwares and was shown privately inside the Capcom booth while our SNK NEOGEO unit was out on the counter in the public area of the SNK/Playmore booth:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Curt

 

 

 

 

 

I played one tonight, and here's my thoughts.

 

1. The joysticks are too tall. They're not like the ms. pac-man sized sticks, they're a bit taller. They have 6 buttons, crappy quality, everything is microswitch.

 

2. It is a SNES port basically, however the difficulty is there. I can't get past the 2nd level on Sinistar (i never can, only on the atari 2600 proto did i get farther than that). I like that sinistar in particular better than say, for the gamecube, because the text is MUCH easier to read. Sinistar looked alright, despite some color changes. However, games like root beer tapper, you can DEFINITELY tell its a very watered down version graphically. But, the difficulty is still there.

 

3. its odd sized. Too tall for a chair, not tall enough to stand and play. Its best being put on a platform about a foot tall to play right.

 

4. The cabinet is pretty strong built, but if they make any fighting games for it, it will definitely be rocking upon playing.

 

Overall, not worth $500, but definitely a good experience. If it was $100 or so, it would be worth it, mainly because I'm a huge tapper and sinistar fan.

972902[/snapback]

Edited November 29, 2005 by Curt Vendel

[sku_u]

I wish I could buy just the empty cabinet, and add my own stuff to it- it would make a nice looking MAME cabaret, but that's about all it's good for.

971940[/snapback]

 

I see a lot of people in a lot of threads wishing they could buy an empty cabinet. It is really easy to build a cabinet yourself. All you need is a band saw (doesn't even have to be a table mounted saw), a hammer, drill, screws and nails, some basic brackets, plywood and some paint. The whole thing would probably take an hour to build. Two hours if you want to sand it and smooth out the edges.

[+FujiSkunk]

For those looking for empty arcade cabines, the makers of the X-Arcade Stik used to make an arcade cabinet of sorts. It was basically an entertainment center shaped like an arcade cabinet, with room for multiple PCs or game consoles, games, an X-Arcade controller, and a TV (up to 32" if I'm not mistaken). Fry's carried them, but it seems they've been discontinued, and now X-Arcade is coming out with their own MAME cabinet.

 

The problem with X-Arcade's cabinet was the price tag: $1,000 retail, which included a controller. I wouldn't mind having one, still, and would have to think hard if I saw one turn up used or on clearance.

[Clay Cowgill]

That is correct, I made the mistake of earlier saying it was a Genesis on a Chip, but it is actually a clone of the SNES chip,[...]

 

The competing firm is a small company called Jazwares, my firm developed a full SNK arcade center for them, what we did however was actually reproduce the exact SNK NEO GEO MVS architecture into an under $100 all in one board.      However, Jazwares decided to put liquidated high end Pentium II's and low end Pentium III systems [...]

 

Curt, Curt, Curt...

 

Geez, man, for god's sake-- get your facts straight or keep 'em to yourself! You'd like a poster-child for trade libel.

 

For the record: you're still wrong on both these counts. The Big Electronic Games unit is *not* a SNES on a Chip (or any other stock "on a chip").

 

Also, Jazwares most definitely does not have "liquidated Pentium II's and low end Pentium III systems" in their offerings. At least look inside one before you speak... (The story I heard on the Jazwares front was pretty different from the rendition you're telling-- might just want to let sleeping dogs lie on that front...)

 

-Clay

[Curt Vendel]

Clay,

 

On the Biggames units, what was shown and told back last year was based around what I mentioned, you got involved afterwards and a much better design (at least for the electronics) was put into the Biggames units, so you corrected me on that. I finally got to see an actual unit this weeked at a Target. Games appeared to look/play fine but I can see some minor elements missing from the games and I would attribute that to you having to make concessions for the lack of memory, so its not on your end but on keeping costs down on the end hardware product. Something I'm all too familiar with having to develop within constraints and not being allowed to do things to their full potential. Outside your control, but the control panel and that TV totally take away from the games and don't do them justice.

 

As for Jazwares, you only heard stories, remember, I actually designed and built all of the proto's per their spec's supplied, I even created the product name for them and I also did all the board designs which Jazwares spent more time trying to rip off the designs then commission the production of them. Too bad for them because another firm has purchased them (not the MVS systems I had shown you, but the full blown systems that run everything) and will be using them in their products for 06'. Jazwares would've had their systems out in stores in September otherwise. So my rendition is what actually is fact.

 

Keep in touch dude, you and I could do some very cool stuff together.

 

 

Curt

 

 

 

Also, Jazwares most definitely does not have "liquidated Pentium II's and low end Pentium III systems" in their offerings. At least look inside one before you speak... (The story I heard on the Jazwares front was pretty different from the rendition you're telling-- might just want to let sleeping dogs lie on that front...)

 

-Clay

979246[/snapback]

Edited December 12, 2005 by Curt Vendel